West Sussex Pub Guide: The Gribble Inn, Oving

The Gribble Inn in Oving, West Sussex, is a pub that does a cracking trade
with an appreciative local clientele.

The Gribble Inn, Oving, West Sussex

By Jonathan Goodall in West Sussex

7:30AM GMT 21 Nov 2008

Google "gribble" (that's a phrase I don't use nearly enough) and you'll find it's a type of woodlouse.

It's also the name of a charming Sussex pub that was once the home of a teacher named Rose Gribble. But it wasn't until she died, 30 years ago, that her 16th-century thatched cottage was bought and transformed into a pub by local farmer Peter Hague.

It was a popular move, seeing as the nearest watering hole, The Tangmere Hotel, had been demolished to make way for the legendary Tangmere airfield during the Second World War. Today, not surprisingly, The Gribble does a cracking trade with an appreciative local clientele.

There's a roaring fire in the saloon bar and a sign warning that mobile "handsets" might be confiscated. Dave and Linda Stone run it as an old-school pub, serving real ales from their own microbrewery around the back. There are six home-brewed beers on the pumps at any given time, alongside Badger Gold and Fursty Ferret from Hall & Woodhouse.

The Gribble's own beers are brewed by Rob Cooper – "Oving born and bred" – who vaguely resembles the television character Catweazle. He knew Rose Gribble and his father brewed the beers here before him.

Intriguingly, Cooper comes up with the name of the beer before he brews it. One can understand the thought processes behind Reg's Tipple, named after a local, or Wobbler, with its sinus-clearing 7.2% alcohol. But Pig's Ear? And Plucking Pheasant? Regardless, his beers are now sold along the south coast from Southampton to Brighton.

A taster tray of six quarter-pints with nibbles is available for £4.50 and it's proving popular among the numerous motoring clubs, including MG, Caterham, AC Cobra and Sunbeam Alpine, that regularly visit The Gribble. "Six quarters add up to the drink-driving limit," says Rob, tapping his nose conspiratorially.

The "Badger steak and mushroom pie" and "Ferret bangers 'n' mash" are not as they sound, thank goodness, but are merely cooked with the beers of those names.

So, there you have it: "gribble" is a surname, a wood-nibbling bug, or a pub leased by Hall & Woodlouse – sorry, Woodhouse.